Why does the hair on the head turn gray at a young age? We look for reasons and understand the situation. Why hair turns gray in young people and even in adolescents

There is a funny myth that gray hair should never be pulled out, otherwise at least three of its relatives will gather for the funeral of each torn hair.

It is really best not to pull your hair out, as this can damage the follicles and cause bald patches. When it comes to graying, pulling the hair out does not speed it up or slow it down. We turn gray for material, not mythical reasons.

Cell age and deterioration

Of course, the decisive factor in the occurrence of gray hair is. By the age of 30, most people can find a few gray hairs in their hair - this is an option. In about half of the world's population, about 50% of the hair becomes gray by the age of 50. This is because the body produces less and less melanin with age, which is responsible for hair pigmentation.

Heredity

Parents often give advice that children don't always follow. However, hereditary traits are not an easy thing to ignore. If a parent turns gray before age 30, the chances are high that children will start to gray at about the same age.

Smoking

Against the background of the enormous harm caused to health by smoking, early graying is not such a terrible consequence of a bad habit. However, smoking can cause hair discoloration. from Chicago found a direct link between smoking and early graying before the age of 30.
Photo:

Stress

A direct link between stress and graying has not been proven. However, there are many cases that support this theory. For example, the first black president of the United States began to turn gray quickly during his first term in office. Presumably this was due to stress.

In 2011, researchers found a link between stress and DNA damage causing. Given that gray hair is an inevitable companion, the stress theory may well be plausible.

Race

Race determines when your hair starts to turn gray. For Europeans, an active process usually begins in the middle of the third decade of life. Asians turn gray at the end of their third decade, black Africans after 40 years.

Diseases

Photo: pixabay.com

Certain diseases, such as thyroid problems, contribute to the loss of hair color. In addition, hair color may change after certain treatments that cause hair loss, such as chemotherapy.

Vitamin D deficiency

The condition of the hair is largely dependent on the amount produced by the body when exposed to sunlight. The researchers recommend getting around 20 minutes of sunlight a day. Those who avoid the sun and stay outside all day increase their chances of turning gray at a young age.

Many people believe that gray hair is a sign of wisdom, intelligence, and rich life experience. As a rule, in men, the first gray hairs can appear after 35 years, and in women - after 40. However, the appearance of gray hair at a young age is also quite common among both sexes.

In the modern world, gray hair at the age of 30 is a fairly common occurrence. Still, gray hair in youth is not a pleasant phenomenon, so many want to get rid of this problem. Are you wondering why hair turns gray at an early age? Because of what it happens that some people have gray hair at the age of 25, while other people, who may be much older, do not have a single gray hair on their heads? Let's figure it out.

What is gray hair?

In order to study such a phenomenon as early graying of hair, you first need to understand what graying is. Why does people's hair turn gray at all?

Gray hair is a physiological process and a manifestation of biological functions that occur in the body with age. Hair color depends entirely on the melanin pigment. With age or due to external factors, this pigment ceases to be produced in sufficient quantities, and the cells inside the hair begin to secrete tiny particles of hydrogen peroxide, which discolor the hair from the inside. It is after this that gray hair begins to appear.

If in men and women the hair begins to turn gray before the age of 35 (provided that all hair turns gray, one gray hair is not considered), then this is called premature graying. In the event that a person develops gray hair at the age of 20 or earlier, this indicates the need for an urgent medical examination.

Gray hair happens:

• congenital;
• acquired;
• age;
• partial;
• complete.

Early graying

Now let's identify 10 factors why hair turns gray in young people:

1. Severe stress. The loss of a loved one, problems at work or school, betrayal - all such situations can provoke the appearance of gray hair as early as thirty (or even less) years. Frequent sadness and depression have been shown to decrease melanin production.
2. Heredity is one of the most common factors in early gray hair. Its presence suggests that a person may have gray hair in the same year in which it appeared in his older relatives.
3. Diseases. When it comes to gray hair at an early age, various diseases of the heart, liver, kidneys, disruption of the stable functioning of the thyroid gland, hormonal disruptions, as well as atherosclerosis cannot be ignored as the reasons for their formation. Despite the fact that a young or adolescent body does not tolerate such ailments as hard as an old one, their consequences can greatly affect hair color.
4. Avitaminosis. Not everyone knows, but the lack of vitamins and minerals in the body can have a bad effect on the condition of the hair follicles and affect the natural processes associated with pigmentation. If this problem is diagnosed in time, then it can be cured and subsequently returned to the hair the natural pigment.
5. Severe diets. A poor diet during a diet will not only not benefit, but also greatly harm the curls. Too moderate consumption or complete rejection of foods with essential vitamins, iron, iodine is also the reason why hair turns gray at the age of 30 and earlier.
6. Smoking. Because of nicotine, the cells of the whole body do not receive a sufficient amount of oxygen, which is why many have gray hair even at 30 years old.
7. Frequent use of hot water while washing your hair. Because of it, the process of producing pigments can be disrupted and graying can begin.
8. Regular consumption of coffee or foods high in salt.
9. The action of medications.
10. Poor circulation.

How to avoid problems

You have already read the information and understood why the hair on the head turns gray at the age of 30 in those whose hair should begin to turn gray much later. Now you're probably wondering if early graying can be prevented? Yes, this is possible, but only if it is not inherent in genetics. You just need to understand that it is impossible to completely prevent gray hair, but you can easily postpone its appearance, for example, for a 20-year period, if you adhere to such simple rules:

• Balanced diet. Food should be rich in vitamins and minerals. It is necessary to add more vegetables, fruits, fresh berries, legumes, nuts to the diet, as well as foods that are high in iodine, calcium, copper and zinc.
• Water balance. Adequate amount of water is the key to the stable functioning of the hair follicles.
• No stress. Take care of your nerves and try to control your emotions. If you can't keep yourself under control, you are prone to stressful situations and there is nothing you can do about it, then do not hesitate to seek help from a psychologist.
• Quitting addictions. It has been scientifically proven that due to smoking and alcohol abuse, the human body ages several times faster. It is imperative to exclude nicotine and alcoholic beverages from your life.
• Adequate sleep. A deep 8-hour sleep will not only prevent early gray hair, but in general, will have a positive effect on health.

As you can see, the reasons why hair turns gray early are quite obvious. In order not to expose your hair to early gray hair, it is enough to establish your lifestyle. There is nothing supernatural about the advice above. All of the above rules are simple truths.

Unfortunately, in the modern world people forget about them, which subsequently leads to a sad outcome. And now we are talking not only about early gray hair, but about the deterioration of health in general. Introduce these rules into your daily life, and it will definitely get better. Remember that everything in this life depends only on yourself.

We are all getting old ... This is a natural evolution of life itself. Some people choose to accept this fact and not worry about it. Others decide to fight because they cannot accept this natural process. In fact, there is nothing wrong with any point of view, as we all try to fight the inevitability of aging, but we do it in different ways.

What causes your hair to turn gray

One of the physical aspects of the natural aging process is the spread of gray hair in our hair, and not everyone likes it. But hair follicles age just like the rest of the body. They produce less melanin over the years. It is the pigment that gives our hair its natural color, and gray hair is a side effect of this process.

But in all people, hair begins to turn gray at different times, and scientists still do not have a clear explanation of why this happens. There was only one consensus that genetics likely has much more to do with early graying of hair than other factors.

In fact, racial demographics tell a lot about this. As a rule, Caucasians begin to turn gray after 30 years, Asians - before reaching 40 years, Africans - closer to 50 years. Be that as it may, more than half of all people have a significant amount of gray hair before they turn 50. For Caucasians, premature graying of hair is considered a change in hair color at 20, for Africans - at 30.

As stated, premature graying is mainly caused by genetics. There are, however, catalysts that can accelerate the change from normal hair tone to one that clearly demonstrates the natural aging process.

This actually brings us back to the heart of the article - answering the question of why some people have premature gray hair. Contrary to popular belief, this physical change in appearance can in some sense be due to lifestyle or other characteristics.

1. Medical condition

Autoimmune diseases attack cells in the body, including those that form hair follicles, making premature graying possible. But there are other medical reasons as well.

A vitamin B12 deficiency or problems with the pituitary gland or thyroid gland can lead to premature aging. The good news is that the physical effects of premature aging (including gray hair) can be reversed. In addition, premature graying of hair for medical reasons is rare.

2. Smoking

Smoking is one of the worst things you can do for your skin and hair. Of course, you cannot see the wrinkles on the scalp, but smoking affects the hair follicles.

Despite the potential effects of smoking on the aging process, it does not have the same impact as genetics. If premature graying is not a common sign in your family, you should see your doctor to evaluate thyroid health, vitamin levels, and rule out anemia - a deficiency of red blood cells or hemoglobin in the blood.

3. Chronic stress

While there is a lot of discussion on this issue, some studies have found a correlation between stress and gray hair. In a study by biologists from the University of New York, scientists observed a decrease in the number of hair follicles due to contraction of stem cells in mice exposed to stressful conditions.

Again, there isn't a lot of research on the effects of stress on premature graying. However, there is ample evidence to suggest that there may indeed be a strong bond between the two.

4. Lack of vitamins

As mentioned, a vitamin B12 deficiency can accelerate hair graying. Vegetarians and vegans, due to their dietary restrictions, may also be at greater risk of premature graying.
Women who take birth control pills and people with gastrointestinal problems may also have a higher risk of premature graying.

What does a person associate with gray hair? Of course, with a noble old age. And this is natural. But why, then, sometimes it happens that some people discover gray hair in their 30s or even 20s?

Gray hair is a sign of aging of the body. It occurs when there is very little melanin pigment in the hair, which is responsible for hair color. Gray hair is completely devoid of this pigment. And another enzyme, tyrosinase, is responsible for the production of melanin. And when there is a cessation of its function, then gray hair begins to appear. The process of termination of tyrosinase activity is genetically inherent. Normally, gray hair in Europeans should not appear earlier than 30 years. But this is not always the case.

Sometimes early gray hair can be the result of a genetic predisposition. There is no need to worry, and you do not need to do anything, because nothing can be done with your own genes. We'll have to come to terms. But sometimes early gray hair is a sign of certain diseases.

Sometimes the silvering of hair that occurs between the ages of 20 and 25 is associated with autoimmune diseases. These diseases include pernicious anemia or overactive thyroid gland. And sometimes gray hair at the age of 20 may be due to a lack of certain trace elements.

Very often, early gray hair can be explained by strong emotional experiences and frequent stress. An example is Queen Marie Antoinette, who turned gray one night before her execution. It is believed that such gray hair is due to the fact that the structure of the hair begins to fill with air space under such stresses. This leads to the fact that the light begins to refract in the wrong way and the hair becomes gray at the same time.

It is worth noting that in men, the mustache and beard first begin to turn gray, and only then this process affects the hair on the head. In women, graying usually begins at the temples.

So it turns out that all the causes of gray hair can be divided into congenital and acquired. Moreover, it is useless to argue with the congenital causes of gray hair - nature here has long taken its toll. But with the acquired causes of gray hair, you can try to fight. If you eliminate the source, then it is quite possible to return the hair to its former color. However, in this case, cases of recovery are very rare.

Today, almost all cosmetic companies have in their arsenal tools that help hide gray hair. In this case, you can very clearly demonstrate the main law of the market - demand gives rise to supply. Indeed, there are not much fewer men with dyed hair today than women. And this is the most popular way to hide gray hair.

But is it worth it? After all, when people see a gray-haired person in front of them, they simply automatically begin to consider him smarter and more experienced. And even if this man is only 30 years old. Even though he is still young, his gray hair for most people will become a symbol of great life experience. And you shouldn't scoff at it. It is likely that the gray hair here is not the punishment of God, which was sent for sins, but just a trace of life's wisdom.

Many people associate gray hair with old age. Today, these ideas are actively crumbling and changing, because, according to tough and impartial statistics, 40% of young people under the age of 30 are already beginning to have gray hair. This applies to both men and women alike. Many experts are trying to find out why this is happening, laboratory studies are being carried out, scientific treatises are being written. There is still no definite answer to the question of why hair turns gray not only among the elderly, but also among young people. Without finding out the reasons and without preventing them, it will be impossible to stop the graying process as a whole. Therefore, you need to analyze your life and look for factors in it that could provoke this unpleasant phenomenon in your life.

Internal illnesses

Gray hair is unpleasant at any age, and even more so there is little joy when hair turns gray early, adding several years to the image at once. Very often, all kinds of internal diseases of various systems and organs become the cause of this phenomenon. They affect metabolic processes, as a result of which the hair begins to turn gray intensively. Among the diseases that can lead to such disastrous consequences, experts call:

• disorders of the nervous system;
• cardiovascular diseases;
• improper functioning of the endocrine glands;
• avitaminosis;
• anemia;
• disturbances in the activity of the digestive tract;
• viral diseases carried over in adulthood (for example, cytomegalovirus);
• Eastern medicine names kidney disease among the possible causes of graying.

Not every person can be forced to go to the hospital and get tested for a particular disease in order to be treated. But if the reason is among the above, without proper treatment, the hair will begin to turn gray very quickly, and then all that remains is to paint it with various colors. If there are no health problems, you need to analyze and revise your lifestyle. A considerable part of scientists name neglect of their own health among the reasons for graying.

Lifestyle

Since childhood, we are all told how important it is to observe the daily regimen, eat right, not smoke and be less nervous. However, it is rare for a person to heed these advice. This is especially true for young people who want to try everything, who have no time to sleep and cook their own homemade food on the stove. As a result, by the age of 25, they begin to wonder why their nails are shamelessly exfoliating, their hair turns gray and falls out, their skin wrinkles, as in adulthood. And few people realize in time that it's all about the way of life that they lead.

Important advice from the editors!

If you want to improve the condition of your hair, special attention should be paid to the shampoos that you use. A frightening figure - 97% of shampoos of famous brands contain substances that poison our body. The main components, due to which all the troubles on the labels are designated as sodium lauryl sulfate, sodium laureth sulfate, coco sulfate. These chemicals destroy the structure of the curls, the hair becomes brittle, loses its elasticity and strength, and the color fades. But the worst thing is that this muck gets into the liver, heart, lungs, accumulates in the organs and can cause cancer. We advise you not to use the products containing these substances. Recently, the experts of our editorial office conducted an analysis of sulfate-free shampoos, where the first place was taken by the funds from Mulsan Cosmetic. The only manufacturer of completely natural cosmetics. All products are manufactured under strict quality control and certification systems. We recommend visiting the official online store mulsan.ru. If you doubt the naturalness of your cosmetics, check the expiration date, it should not exceed one year of storage.

1. Protein-free diets deprive the body of tyrosine, a substance without which hair can turn gray quickly and early. At risk are very young girls aged 18 to 25 years who do not think about the consequences of such fasting. The extra pounds melt before our eyes, and along with them, the hair disappears, shamelessly falling out at once in bundles and turning gray in whole strands. In this case, the girls are doomed to life-long coloring in order to hide this phenomenon and not seem older than they really are.
2. Insufficient nutrition, due to which the body lacks vitamins and minerals that are responsible for the health and beauty of curls. This is usually due to a lack of fresh fruits and vegetables in the diet.
3. Chronic overwork, regular neurosis, constant experiences are called the most common cause of gray hair by most of the scientists dealing with this issue. Moreover, most often this factor is noted in men who are subject to latent stress. It negatively affects the production of melanin, which is responsible for pigmentation of the hair, and it turns gray. And it is this reason that is to blame for the fact that more and more often you can see whole strands of gray hair on the heads of modern young people. The frantic pace of life, the need to survive morally in the most difficult conditions - all this turns the young generation into old people, which they feel in their souls. Stress leads to spasm of the blood vessels that feed the hair. The result is intense hair loss and silvering.
4. The love of relaxation can also sometimes cause early graying of hair. During active rest in the sun under the influence of ultraviolet radiation, you can very soon see the notorious gray hair on your head.

It is worth paying attention to the fact that in men, gray hair is most often due to this particular group of reasons, because they rarely think about the connection between their lifestyle and the condition of their hair. Women catch on earlier and begin to change rapidly after 30 years, trying to somehow normalize their rhythm of existence. However, it is a little easier for women to solve the problem if they have gray hair by coloring. For men, if the reason was not identified in time, there is only one way out - to turn the flaw into a highlight and charm, forcing everyone to admire the silver of their head, wise over the years.

And other causes of gray hair

And a few more reasons that, according to scientists, may contribute to the fact that hair turns gray.

• Age

Do not be surprised at the silver strands in your head if you are already over 40 years old, since the changes occurring in the body during this period limit the access of blood and oxygen to the scalp, due to which both the hair structure and melanin, which is responsible for their pigmentation.

• Headdress

Some scientists have suggested that the lack of winter headgear in the cold season leads to serious disturbances in the microcirculation of the scalp, which can also provoke premature graying of hair.

• Appearance color type

There is no escaping the fact that blondes turn gray earlier than brunettes, but this is offset over time by the fact that dark-haired gray hair is much more noticeable.

• Heredity

a hereditary factor, when the immune systems of children and parents differ in similarity, is the reason with which all researchers of this phenomenon agree: if parents' hair turns gray early, children should be prepared for the same (although there are exceptions).

It is imperative to understand why the hair on the head turns gray. This will eliminate from life the factor that provokes the problem of silver strands, and stop its further development. This flaw cannot be treated, therefore it is much better to respond quickly and promptly to the very first signals of your own body. And if men often perceive gray hair as a symbol of wisdom and beauty, then silver in their hair does not add charm to women, treacherously revealing its age. Therefore, it is so important for ladies to seek, find and eliminate all possible causes of this misfortune.